Some proposed projects were shifted around after the Sonoma Valley Unified School District board made a priority list for Measure E funding during a special meeting on June 20.
At a study session on July 10, Steve Kwok, with the district’s architectural firm QKA, told the board that some projects got moved around because of finances. “We had to make some modifications,” he said, “Since we were doing the math on the fly that day.”
The $120-million bond sale also went from a two-year interval to a three-year interval so the bonds will now be sold in 2017, 2020, 2023 and 2026. The first sale will be $40 million, the second and third sales will be $30 million each and the fourth will be $20 million.
He pointed out that the figures for the projects included escalation rates which he figured at 10 percent for the first sale, 21 percent for the second round, 36 percent for the third bond sale and 56 percent for the fourth and last sale in 2026.
The project list and costs he presented to the board included projects for the fourth bond sale, which the board didn’t address at the June meeting. Kwok, Tenaya Dale, the district’s construction manager, and Tony Albini, the district’s maintenance chief, penciled in projects for the fourth sale.
“These are not recommendations,” Kwok said, “they’re suggestions.”
Included in the costs are contingency funds so the district can “deal with the known unknowns,” he said.
“In the first bond sale, we’ve got $4.7 million in contingencies,” he said. “By the time we get to the fourth bond issue, I guarantee there will be changes.”
While the board would like more time to mull the projects and get more feedback from all stakeholders, Kwok reminded them that for every three months delay, costs will rise another percent.
“I see the dollar signs going up,” Dale added.
Among the big-ticket items on the first sale would be a gym, locker room and performing arts venue at Adele Harrison ($3.5 million); and all-weather track at Altimira ($3.5 million); a multi-purpose room at Woodland Star ($2.95 million) and new classrooms at Sonoma Charter ($1.2 million).
Sonoma Valley High has four big-ticket items in the first round, library improvements ($1.5 million) ag farm improvements ($1.1 million), career and technical shops ($3.46 million) and the fitness and wellbeing fields – which some refer to as a stadium ($9.56 million). The pool ($7.88 million) at the high school has been tentatively pushed back to the 2020 bond sale.
Every school in the district will receive Master Plan projects from the first bond sale.
Dale said while not every campus has a big-ticket item in the first sale, they were looking at what school’s wanted, and Dunbar, for example, wants a new septic system at the top of its list. And she also pointed out that Flowery has had a lot of work done on its campus over the past couple of years.
Kwok told the board it has some wiggle room since the DSA (Division of the State Architect) is trying to get caught up on its backlog and won’t be accepting any new projects from the end of July through mid-September. “But there’s going to be a tidal wave of projects at the DSA in mid-September,” he said.
Boardmember Britta Johnson wanted to know if the district was still on track to have the first bond sale of $40 million sometime this fall. John Bartolome, the district’s chief business officer, assured her that the district is starting the process and is looking at a sale in October or November.
Despite an almost full room at the district meeting room, only two people had anything to say during public comment.
Don Jeffries pointed out that when the board put the bond out, it was stressing academics. “I think the community felt it was funding academic excellence,” he said. “I’m concerned that a disproportionate amount is going to athletics instead of academics.”
Alice Schimm, the president of the Boosters told the board she was bummed that construction isn’t starting “tomorrow.” And she said she expected improvements to the athletic facilities.
Board President Dan Gustafson said he’s looking for feedback and that he expects to schedule another study session in mid-August to finalize the projects.
Email Bill at bill.hoban@sonomanews.com.
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